Environmental process overview

Environmental review is an important step in the planning and design of the future waterfront. In accordance with the Washington State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), the City of Seattle is evaluating the potential impacts to the natural and built environment that could result from the planned improvements to the waterfront.

On October 31, 2016, the City of Seattle released the Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Alaskan Way, Promenade, and Overlook Walk. The AWPOW projects include most of the Waterfront Seattle improvements. Other infrastructure improvement projects along the waterfront, such as the public piers, will undergo SEPA review as design progresses. More information will be added to this page as environmental review for these projects begins.

An EIS has already been completed for the Elliott Bay Seawall Project, with the publication of the Final Supplemental EIS in April 2014.

Alaskan Way, Promenade + Overlook Walk

Final EIS

On October 31, 2016, the City of Seattle released the Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Alaskan Way, Promenade, and Overlook Walk. The Final EIS evaluates the potential impacts to the natural and built environment that could result from the AWPOW projects and responds to the public comments submitted during the comment periods for the AWPOW Draft EIS and Supplemental Draft EIS. Consistent with SEPA, there is no comment period accompanying the release of a Final EIS.

On April 18, 2016, the City of Seattle released a Supplemental Draft EIS for the Alaskan Way, Promenade, and Overlook Walk. The Supplemental Draft EIS was open for public comment from April 18 – May 18, 2016.

In addition to the action and no action alternatives evaluated in the Draft EIS, the Supplemental Draft EIS evaluates two new alternatives in response to comments received on the Draft EIS:

A narrower Alaskan Way that moves transit operations from dedicated lanes into general purpose lanes with transit priority;

A revised Overlook Walk to accommodate a potential Aquarium expansion project in that location.

The new alternatives were added in response to comments and in alignment with the current Master Plan for the Seattle Aquarium expansion. Each alternative will be equally and thoroughly evaluated, including review of public comments, before any final decisions are made. Comments on the Supplemental Draft EIS will be responded to as part of the Final EIS, anticipated to be published in late 2016.

The City of Seattle held a public meeting about the Supplemental Draft EIS on May 10, 2016. You can view the Supplemental Draft EIS public meeting materials here.

Read the Supplemental Draft EIS

On June 29, 2015, the City of Seattle released the Alaskan Way, Promenade, and Overlook Walk Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Draft EIS). The Draft EIS was open for public comment from June 29 - August 26, 2015.

The City of Seattle held a public meeting about the Draft EIS on July 22, 2015. You can view the Draft EIS public meeting materials here.

The DEIS development began following the EIS scoping period from August 14 and September 25, 2013. During the scoping period, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) accepted public comments and held a public meeting at Seattle City Hall where attendees could leave comments and learn about SEPA, the purpose of scoping and potential environmental elements for study in the EIS.